Hosiery



401i thickness of fabric. A particular advantage Patented June 21, 1932 UNITED ysfrares LAzURn L. GOODMAN, for INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, i

HOSIERY Application fIId July 29, 1931. Serial No.k 553,841.

This invention relates toflatfknit full fashioned stockings having'a Welt comprising two thicknesses of fabric. Essentially, it concerns a` welt construction in which both the inner and outer fabric extend continuously circumferentially of the stocking so that any strain put on the welt will be equally distributed between the two thicknesses of fabric. In accomplisliing'this result,` I pro pose to provide a seam construction for the welt different from that now generally utilized and to produce the desired seaming accordingto novel practices.

It is now the general'practice in assembling flat knit stocking blanks having a double welt to seam up the outer welt fabric in line with the seam of the" leg fabric, but to leave the edges of the inner fabric free except at the' ends which meet the fabric of the leg portion and the outer welt fabric along the welt line. Such construction has the disadvantage of producing an unequal distribution of strain such that the outer welt fabric is more susceptible to runs. Furthermore, the stocking supporting instrumentalities now commonly in use often require a connection along the rear seam of the stocking so that, due to the hole formed along the edge of the inner fabric of the welt, only a single thickness of fabric is available with which to associate the supporting means, thus increasing the danger of runs or holes.

By the herein contemplated construction, the welt is completely seamed along the edges of both the inner and outer fabric with the result that a double thickness of material is provided at all points circumferentially of the stocking, thus permitting supporting means to be connected in proper position to a double resides in the fact that a supporter can be connected at the very rear of a stocking to maintain the seam straight and in alignment with the leg. Further, by reason of the distribution of the strain, runs are less likely to occur due to overstretching of the welt, and the two thicknesses of the Welts being under equal tension will present a neater appear- In accomplishing the above stated general objects, theedges Vof both the inner and outer fabric ofthe 'welt maybe joined in asingle seam in continua-tion of tha-tof the leg lpor/- tion ofthe stockingf However, such a construction produces a bulky seam with accompanying discomfort tothe wearer-wand `detracts from the fiexib'le and form' fitting character of the Welt. Hence, in the preferred embodim'entof my inventionflplropose to provide separa-te seams? to unite the edges of 6G the inner and outer fabric of the double welt, so that the inner and outer plies of the Welt are free from eachother at the seam. f

In seaming up a stocking in accordance with my preferred embodiment, the edges of one thickness of the fabric maybe seamed from the welt line to the welt top and theL seamfor thei'other thickness of fabric may be formed as a continua-tion of the seam of the leg portion-,of 'thestOC-king. While, of course, the 'seamingmay be effected relative to either side kof the fabric in the innerfcrr outer portions of the welt, itis preferable that for the sake of appearance, the seaming shouldlie inwardly of the'exp'osed surface of the stocking. Preferably, also,fthe 'seams for therespective inner and outer weltfabrics should Vextend on corresponding Isides rather than facing each other with' a 'View of preventing the twofseams from interfering with each other in such away as might cause dis-v comfort to the wearer and detract from they elasticityof the welt. p

In the accompanying drawing, I have illus# trated the' preferred embodiment of my'in-'f vention, wherein: f

Fig'. l isa fragmentary view 'of the stock ing taken from the front with a portion broken awayv to illustrate the seam constructionV for the inner welt fabric according to my present invention; n g- Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view corresponding toFig. lshowing' the appearance o f the outer Welt scemi-which, in` effect, is similar to known practices; y

Fig; 3`is a sectional View takenl on the line' 3--3 of Fig. lillustrating clearly thevseam construction forthe double welt accordingtoJ my invention; 1 j

The essential departure of thev present in'y 1 and 2, the numeral 10 indicates the leg portion of a stocking which is adjoined by a welt comprising a double thickness of mate- `rial in which 11a indicates the outer welt fabric and 11b the inner welt fabric.

The edges of the outer welt fabric 11a are gathered in a-seam extending from the welt line l2 to about the top of the stocking and, if desirable, it may be continued slightly beyond the top downwardly for a shortdistance to, say, a point w for the express purpose of preventingthe end of the seam coming exactly at the top of the stocking. The seam for such portion of the welt is indicated by the numeral 13a. Such construction is essentially similar to known practices.

Inorder that the inner fabric of the welt may serve to bear a corresponding amount of strain and also to provide a continuously extending kdouble fabric circumferentiallyl of the welt the inner fabric 11b is also seamed from the welt line to the top, the edges thereof being gathered in a seam 13b.

Inasmuch as the seam 13a of the outer welt fabric 11al forms a continuation of the leg seam and faces inwardly of the stocking, the seam 13b of the inner welt fabric 11b must terminate slightly short of the line of joinder of the welt and leg fabric as indicated at 14. Preferably the edges of the inner fabric` should be free for-about an eighth or quarter of an inchto prevent any strain at the point of intersection of the line with the seam inasmuch as such point is an inherently weak portion of a stocking.

It will be noted from Fig. 3 that in the preferred embodiment of the invention the seam 13a in the outer fabric lies on the inward side of the fabric. For the sake of neat appearance and comfort, and to prevent interference between the seams 13a and 13b, it is desirable that the latter be positioned on the inward side so that the respective seams will occupy corresponding positions. With this arrangement, the seaming of the stocking blank may be effected so that the seamfor either the outer or inner welt fabric may be made as a continuation of the seam of the leg fabric 10. The seaming of the other portion of the welt fabric will beV formed/in a separate operation.

I claim:

1. A Hat-knit full-fashioned stocking having a double welt, the respective edges of the inner and outer fabric of the welt being seamed together independently one of the other.

2. A flat-knit full-fashioned stocking having a double welt comprising inner and outer portions, and independent seams joining the edges of the inner and outer portions over substantially their full length, said seams being located on the corresponding sides of the respective inner and outer portions of the welt.

3. A knitted stocking seamed tubular and having a turned or folded welt, said welt being seamed along the edges of both its inner and outer fold independently of each other.

4. A knitted stocking seamed tubular and having a two-ply welt, said plies being seamed along their respective edges free from each other.

5. A knitted stocking seamed tubular and having Va two-ply welt, said welt being seamed along the edges of both plies, said two plies being seamed independently.

6.- A knitted stocking seamed tubular and having a two-ply welt, the seam of the single ply fabric extending throughout the outer plyV and part way along the inner ply, another seam extending substantially from the single'ply fabric along the inner ply to meet the other seam.

7. A knitted stocking seamed tubular and having a plural ply welt, and a single ply leg, the seam of the single ply fabric extending Ythroughout the outer Aply and part way alongthe inner ply `ofthe welt, another seam extending substantially from the single ply fabric along the inner ply to meet the other seam, said two seams being free from each other where the single ply fabric and the two plies of the welt meet.

In testimony7 whereof, I aihx my signature.

LAZURE L. GOODMAN. 

